The Story Within the Suit
by Anonymous Blackie
Summary: A distressed, unemployed dropout thinks she's lost her life when she finds a miracle job article for the Freddy's Pizzeria down the street. On the first night of the job, she thinks of it as an easy task to complete. But as she continues the other four nights, it feels as if the job is asking for more than they advertised for. Yet, she also finds herself always wanting to return.
1. The Call

Well then, I guess today is the end of me. My life, my dreams, my ambitions are all going down the drain along with my dignity. Without a career, where would a college dropout be spending her life? On the streets? In the eyes of a stranger while vigorously sliding up and down a metal pole and allowing my audience to lustily gaze upon my half-naked body? The options were endless. As would be the time I will spend working the 6-hour night shift at my new job.

The newspaper comes a bit too often for the patience of my significant other. Numerous marketing sales, worldwide threats, bombings and minor battles and the infinite conflicts of religious-bound countries would fill each page. I was very fond of reading them with the benefit of informing myself of the importance of my taxes. Mostly, I read them for the political cartoons. As I led my eyes across the page, I came across a seemingly urgent article. A HELP WANTED sign in bold letters titled the stanza of words. Reading it, I suddenly realized my financial and employment status: I needed money and a job. Desperation had overcome my sensibility and I began to rush through the requirements and procedures. It was safe to say that I seemed perfect for the job. The only position open was a nighttime security guard over at Freddy Frazbear's Pizzeria. There were no special skills needed, I didn't have to have a Food Handler's License, and all I would have to do was monitor the cameras and animatronics. Okay, monitoring the animatronics was a new one, but what caught my eye was the paycheck. $120 just for the week! It may not sound like much to some, but I was a tax-paying citizen who also had rent and food to worry about. I would be the last person in the world to take this job with no regrets.

Just as I circled the job article, I heard the apartment door unlock. I perked my head up with hopes that it wasn't my landlord collecting the overdue pay. But I felt both a wave of relief and dissatisfaction when my boyfriend, Moe, walked through the door. He sighed heavily at the sight of me on the couch and threw his keys on the counter.

"Yo, Ray'mon," he called to me. "What's the holdup? Thought maybe you'd have some dinner waiting for me." I was already annoyed. I turned my eyes back to the newspaper.

"You have perfectly functional arms and legs and hopefully a brain," I snapped. "Make your own food. I'm busy."

"Doing what? You ain't got a job or a life." He replied. I risked ignoring him. I didn't need another reminder from the entrepreneur who failed to even support his own needs on his own. His parents were rich enough to give him an early stock-marketing business. What he didn't realize was the fact that the invested stocks he had within the exchanging business had run out as the stock prices were going down. In the pit of despair, he begrudgingly sold all he had in order to even afford his own small place. His parents, both respectfully successful and wise brokers, were too embarrassed to allow him to reside in their home. I pitied him because despite their wonderful personalities, they've erased his existence from the minds of the public and left him to be smothered in hatred and shame. In truth, he needed me more than I needed him.

I felt the newspaper being swiped away from my hands.

"Did you hear me, bitch?" he said. "I said I wanted some goddamned food. Now get off your lazy ass and make yourself useful." I abruptly stood up.

"For your information, you undoubtedly inoperable mutt, we don't have any edible supplements in our refrigerator," I replied. "And if allowing myself to spend five minutes from cleaning the entire place, folding the laundry, filing our taxes, scrapping whatever penny we have left, and tolerating your ignorance to sit down and look for a job is what you call lazy, then I have no idea what you would name yourself."

"Stop using that damned language you women use," he said. "I'm still starving."

"That language is called intelligence." I said and wanted to add _which everyone knows you lack_.

I could tell he was refraining from raising his fist and leaving a large mark on my face. He swallowed in the air and stormed out of my presence. I nonchalantly sat back down on the couch and looked at the phone number on the article.

"_Hello. You've reached Freddy Frazbear's Pizzeria. The happiest pizzeria for families and kids of all ages. At our restaurant, we know how to bring those bright smiles to our children and bring them joy that they will remember forever. We also-_

"Ugh, can a customer just cut through the unwanted information already?" I complain.

_For our special birthday party plans and menu, press 1. To consult with our management and employees, press 4. For questions and/or concerns, press 7._

"Ah, here we go." I press the "7". I heard ringing on the other line for about six minutes before hearing a male employee's voice.

"_Hello, thanks for calling Freddy's Pizzeria. This is Rick; how can I help you?"_

"Hi, um, my names Ray Kelahan and I saw your article in the newspaper that your restaurant was in need of a nighttime security guard. Is that correct?" I answer in my clearest voice.

"_Yes, ma'am, we sure are. We have just opened up that position this week." He said._

"Excellent because I want to apply for that position."

"_Really? Well, that's great news! You know, you're the first person to apply for this job in a while and our manager's really desperate for a worker."_

"Oh, well I guess that leaves no room for competitors I assume?" I'm guessing he didn't seem to understand my remark and I didn't expect him to either. I proceeded to continue my questions.

"Anyway, um, do I need to fill out an application and set up an interview with your manager?"

"_Nope. Since you're our first candidate for this job, all you have to do is walk right in, look at those cameras and leave at 6:00 in the morning."_

What? Not that I thought much would arise from this phone call or these restaurant members themselves, but I was starting to question my need of being hired. Then again, without having to look throughout the application and meet with the manager, a lot of time has been saved. Not only that, but there was no way I would cut myself short of how reliable and hardworking I am. I was sure I would impress them on my first night.

"Well that's good to hear. I will be arriving within the premises tonight, or rather tomorrow morning, at 12:00 a.m."

"_That's great, sport! Um, just one question." _I waited and listened closely. _"You seem like a smart and delightful_ _young lady. Why would you want to choose a low-class job of watching over robotic animals?"_

I bit my lip and hesitated. Why should I reveal my poor choices that place a hypocritical label on my forehead with someone I had just brought into existence two minutes ago? No. If this man would desire to believe that I am the elegant and pleasant woman my vocabulary intends to unravel, so be it.

"I'm afraid that I will have to keep that material to myself. I just want a new job area to gain experience in." That seemed to be enough for him.

"_Well alright, sport! Good luck! See you there!"_

"Thank you. Have a good evening." I hung up the phone. And while I continued to wait on my impending involvement in this pizzeria in which I had not known occurred close to my home, I was in hope that my hopeless, pathetic lover had heard everything that had happened.


	2. First Night

_April 27 12:00 A.M_

_Night 1_

Not too shabby though the place could use lots of architectural creativity. My uniform made me look less like an ordinary security job and more of a janitor. Blue, cotton fabric with whatever shoes I willingly placed on my feet. In this case, I had pulled on the "reckless teenager" phase and wore some black and white converse. I'm surprised nobody from Freddy's had mistaken me for the opposite gender. Then again, I'm not a very average height. Anyways, it was time to perform the working art of running the night shift.

I managed to sneak out through the door while dearest Moe was sleeping. The monotonous idiot didn't even lay eyes on me ever since that faithful call. Oh well, it feels nice to finally relieve myself of the household stress.

I feel as though the people that appear to have a job over here are careless as the children they serve. Right as soon as I walk into the door, I see empty soda cups on my desk in my office, crumpled posters and random documents scattered everywhere, and the lights are bleakly flickering into the pitch blackness. The floor was coated in dust bunnies and what seemed to be a combination of petrified pizza crusts and candy wrappers. Repulsive! To make matters worse, not even the cockroaches, famous for feasting on essences of rotten foods on the ground, could survive in this filth. Dead bug skeletons decorated the corners of the carpet wrapped in cobwebs. Whatever had happened to the lightened walls that supposedly influenced the children's faces to brighten in naïve grins was beyond me. I wondered exactly where I was supposed to begin my work when I walked up to an open office with a note attached to the door frame. The note had my name on it. Well at least one of the employees is thoughtful.

I set my coat down and placed the cap that came with the uniform atop of my head. The bulletin board in front of the desk was covered with posters with the animatronic characters and their phrases. The first one, the restaurant-named main character, was a brown bear with a name known as Freddy. He wore a tiny top hat and his eyes were so realistic, it was almost abnormal. The second one was a purple and large rabbit with erect ears and eyes that looked more artificial. The last one was a yellow chick with a bib that said "Let's Eat!" on it. Its beak had sharp-looking teeth and its eyes looked as if they had dark circles covering them. Out of all the animals, I believed the chick to be the scary-looking. But I had the general assumption that most children could not figure that for themselves. Followed by the other childish posters, the one with the main animatronics was the biggest. This had increased their value to myself.

_Now what exactly must I be doing right now? _I thought. _Shouldn't they have received notification of my hiring? Where is the introductory speech? Where are my directions to running the place? I'm not even sure where the camera panel is located._

Then I heard the sound of a telephone ringing. I wasn't clear on whether I should've picked it up or left it ringing but it reverted to the voicemail. The sound of the message had a bit of static in the background but I managed to hear the other person very well.

"_Hello? Hellooooo? Hey, umm, I wanted to record a message for you to get started on your first night."_

_Oh, perfect timing, _I thought and listened closely.

"_Um…I actually worked in that office before you. I'm…finishing up my last week right now as a matter of fact so…I know it can be a little overwhelming, but I'm here to tell you: there's nothing to worry about. Uhh, you'll do fine!"_

Well that was a little bit more reassuring that I needed. Still, it was nice to know that someone felt the need to support me in a certain time of need.

"_So…let's just focus on getting you through your first night. Okay?_

_Uh…let's see. First there's an introductory greeting from the company I'm supposed to read. Uh…it's a kind of a legal thing, you know. 'Welcome to Freddy Fazzbear's Pizza: a magical place for kids and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life. Fazzbear Entertainment is not responsible for damage, property, or person. Upon the discovery of the damage or death of a third, a missing person's report will be filed within ninety days or as soon as property and premise have been thoroughly cleaned and bleached and the carpets have been replaced. Blah, blah, blah."_

Well then, these people sure know how to show they really care for their workers. I know that avoiding responsibility is the easier way to wade through the working industry, but I'd hate to be suffering of an injury in this place. No liabilities, no lawsuits, no loss of business. That's just the way these people would go about it.

"_Now that might seem bad, I know, but there's really nothing to worry about. Uh…the animatronics here do get a bit quirky at night, but do I blame them? No! If I were forced to sing those same stupid songs for twenty years and I never got a bath, I would be pretty irritable at night too. So remember, these characters hold a special place in the hearts of children. Uh…you need to show them a little respect, right? Okay." _

Quirky? I didn't necessarily know what he meant by that, but I wasn't going to concern myself over some fellow coworker's nonsense. He seemed a bit too confident explaining that considering how nervous he sounds speaking.

"_So just be aware of this: the characters do tend to wander a bit. Uhh…they're left on some kind of free-roaming mode at night. Uhh…something about their servos locking up if they're turned off for too long. Uhh…they used to wander during the day too but then there was the 'Bite of '87'. Yeah…i-it's amazing that the body can live without the frontal lobe, you know?"_

The "Bite of '87"? Someone lost their frontal lobe? Good God, what exactly did he mean by that? Was he trying to tell me that the free-will of these characters convinced them to remove a piece of the human brain? Impossible. They're only animatronics without any living aspects within them.

"_Now concerning your safety: the only real risk you have as the watchman around here, er watchwoman that is, if any, is the fact that these characters uhh…if they happen to see you after hours, probably won't recognize you as a person. Th-They'll most likely see you as a metal endo-skeleton without its costume on. Now since that's against the rules over here at Freddy Fazzbear's Pizza, they'll probably try to…forcefully stuff you inside a Freddy Fazzbear suit. Umm…now that wouldn't be so bad if the suits themselves weren't filled with crossbeams, wires, and animatronic devices, especially around the facial area, so you can imagine how having your head stuffed inside one of those could cause a bit of discomfort…and death. Uhh…the only parts of you that would see the light of day again would be your eyeballs and teeth would pop out at the front of the mask. Yeah…they don't tell you these things when you sign up…"_

I hoped this voice message would end soon because I was starting to feel discomfort just by hearing about it. I'm not a person who would get easily frightened or disoriented by a story like this. I figured it was just more gibberish fairytales that these people liked to exchange with each other. But before the call ended, there was a portion of the message that I enjoyed.

"_Uhh…hey, listen I was um…I was really impressed with your call yesterday. Uh you really have an impressive way with words. I_'_m guessing an educated person like yourself would really wow someone like me in one second. Yeah…"_

Why do I get the feeling that "way with words" bit wasn't technically supposed to be taken as a compliment?

"_But hey! First day should be a breeze. I'll chat with you tomorrow. Uhh…check those cameras and remember to close the doors only if absolutely necessary. Gotta conserve power. Alright. Goodnight." _

Okay, so first thing's first: check the cameras. The panel that was showing the locations of each camera seemed a bit on the low quality side. I couldn't really see very well being a person who is used to a bright array of light on the things I read. I could make out the show stage with the animatronics each in order with the rabbit holding a guitar, the bear at the microphone, and the chick standing over to the side. There was a camera for each area: bathrooms, west hall, east hall, back room, storage room, dining room, kitchen, and of course the show stage. The place was very dark with small patches of light catching the animatronics. When I saw that each of the animals were in their places, I leaned back on the computer chair that came with the desk and tried to comprehend the voicemail.

For starters, who was that guy calling? It sounded like Rick but with more stutter and shyness than before. Wait…it was Rick! Rick was the one who was telling me these strange stories? How queer and a bit offensive. What does he take me for? I'm no fool and if there were any real danger towards myself, I'd use my intuitive skills and notice it in a millisecond. Oh well. As far as I know, his life doesn't seem to be supplying him with many activities and methods of entertainment besides this job. Everyone needs some form of purpose in life, right?

Anyways, I crossed my ankles over my desk and let my arms fall lazily and hang at my sides. I checked the front stage camera and so far, nothing requiring an alarm had happened. Freddy was at his position with his microphone, the rabbit was holding its guitar in its permanent position, and the chicken was in its place with its mouth hanging open. So far, I think that's one of the scariest things I've ever seen. The eyes had eye color, pupils, and even veins. Such a peculiar definition of an animal made entirely of nothing but crossbeams and wires it was. Now, every five minutes I would be checking on each of them to be sure of their constant presence within the vicinity.

There was one exception for the most part: the rabbit had left its area. I leaned forward to look at the camera to see where it was. At first, I had trouble pressing the icons for each camera position. But I accidentally placed enough pressure to activate the west hall camera. There it was. Standing in the middle of the hallway like an ignoramus. I thought I heard the sound of robotic limbs moving but I figured it was just my ears buzzing from the loud static and lightbulbs.

I let myself relax for a bit before checking the various other picture spots. It wasn't mentally healthy for my mind to withdrawal from the real world for long. Various flashbacks from my failed choices would haunt me and tug at my shoulders until I was unable to take it any longer. Yet, here it was about to begin. Instead of any chance of redemption, I let the repeated memorabilia infect my brain.

"_Is that her?" I was asked. I looked over at the small, red-haired child lurking in the distance. _

"_What do you mean?" I replied._

"_Your daughter?" the person said. "Is that her?" I once again glanced over at the little female and shook my head._

"_Are you sure?" I was asked again. I grew unnecessarily impatient at the comment._

"_Does she look, for even a split millisecond, exactly like any speck of my appearance? I'd like to be recognized as the mother of an ebony black-haired child with pale skin and brown eyes. That little girl is exactly the opposite."_

"_If she isn't yours, why does she follow you around?" _

_I am not the type of person to speak of these events in my lifetime. They weren't too personal to be kept in discretion, but I wasn't the most open person towards anyone. Not even that little girl. This had all been take place at a park in which she decided to attend with me. However I thought I'd have made it clear that it wasn't my responsibility. I utterly refused to remind myself why that had happened or what to do about it. As the redheaded 5-year-old approached me, with her apricot skin, large ocean eyes, and dark forest of freckles, I wanted to turn around and angrily walk the other way. But the smallest, sane percentage of me was forcing me to stay..._

I had snapped out of my daze at the sound of rustling footsteps. I peeked into the camera to keep track of where the sound was coming from. The first belief in my mind was how unpredictable this situation could become. Rick had stated in his message that the animatronics indeed tend to travel along the restaurant and loiter around the office.

The next culprit was the chick. It had disappeared from being next to the hero, Freddy. Who could blame it? Being the head of the animal gang, that Freddy should have a reputation of arrogance. It had only passed around 30.5 seconds since she had shifted so I assumed she hadn't moved very far. I pressed the camera for the storage room and saw her distorted face staring back at me. Holy God! These animatronics move at a quick pace even carrying all that heavy metal in their bodies. The rabbit was still in its area directly in the center of the hall. Its posture was so perfectly straight standing up with its arms at its sides. It was a bit hard to see the full detail under the blinking light. I was only able to capture its outline which made it look a bit more intimidating.

As the past 30 minutes have passed, I've skimmed through each of the cameras. All I've seen were the animatronics frantically shifting from one place to another and a random music theme playing in the background. I haven't been to this restaurant in the last 15 years, but I was guessing that it was the mascot tune. It played unusually loud but I determined that budget cuts led to an electrical glitch in the machine's system. Checking the camera in the kitchen was something that brought my attention. The camera was disabled and only audio was available. I think I heard some pots and pans moving in there which was a bit creepy.

And then I saw it. At first, I heard heavy footsteps outside my office. I thought one of them was going back to their position. But when I flicked on my blind spot light outside my door, there was the surprising face of Bonnie the Bunny.

"What the holy hell?..." I muttered to myself.


End file.
